Solving Key Astrophysical Puzzles at Wootton Center for Astrophysical Plasma Properties

ORAL

Abstract

We will explore the physical and astrophysical motivations for the current experiments conducted by the Wootton Center for Astrophysical Plasma Properties (WCAPP) on the Z-machine at Sandia National Laboratories (SNL). This work informs our understanding of the Sun and Sun-like stars, radiation dominated plasma in accretion disks around compact objects---including supermassive black holes at the centers of galaxies, and our understanding of the compact endpoint of almost all stars, the white dwarf stars. The solution to significant puzzles surrounding these objects will come from reproducing, studying and benchmarking the underlying physics of these plasmas in the laboratory. The talks that follow in this section will detail the progress we have made in each of these areas.

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Authors

  • Don Winget

    Univ of Texas - Austin, University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas at Austin

  • Michael Montgomery

    University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas at Austin

  • R.C. Mancini

    University of Nevada, Reno, Univ of Nevada - Reno, University of Nevada Reno, Dept. Physics, UNR, USA, UNR, USA

  • Bart Dunlap

    University of Texas at Austin, The University of Texas at Austin

  • Guillaume Loisel

    Sandia National Laboratory, Sandia National Laboratories

  • T. Nagayama

    Sandia National Laboratory, SNL, USA, Sandia National Laboratories

  • James Bailey

    Sandia National Laboratory, Sandia Natl Lab, Sandia National Laboratories

  • Thomas Gomez

    Sandia National Laboratories

  • Marc-Andre Schaeuble

    Sandia National Laboratories

  • Duane Liedahl

    Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

  • Patricia Cho

    The University of Texas at Austin

  • Daniel Mayes

    University of Nevada, Reno

  • Kyle Swanson

    University of Nevada, Reno, Univ of Nevada - Reno

  • Bryce Hobbs

    The University of Texas at Austin